Combining the Prophet’s action with Jabir and Ibn Mas’ud’s action in the position of the imam

Question:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. The questioner asks: Which of the two actions should we follow? The action of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) with Jabir and Jabar in the row, or the action of Abdullah ibn Mas’ud with al-Aswad and his uncle?

Answer:
Ibn Mas’ud attributed this to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), which indicates that both are permissible. It is permissible for the imam to be in the middle of the row, even though it is better for him to be at the front of the row. So Ibn Mas’ud indicated the permissibility of this; it is permissible.